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E-File

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5.3

Overall Score

Author: Kaitlyn Short

LAST UPDATED: April 24th, 2024

E-File.com was founded in 2013 and provides affordable tax software that is reportedly up to 50 percent less expensive than some other online preparers. E-File.com provides software to help individuals electronically file both federal and state taxes in a quick and easy way. The company offer three different options for tax filing, including a free service. E-File.com does not sell any of its customer information to third parties, as opposed to many other software providers; its goal is to provide an affordable product without sacrificing a customer's privacy. 

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The Good

  • Plan Options
  • File Quickly
  • Qualified Tax Support
  • Guarantees and Audit Protection

Plan Options

E-File offers three different plans to help with tax filing. The first is a free plan, which includes features to file single or jointly and covers federal taxes. The second plan that E-File offers is the Deluxe Plus E-File, which costs $24.99. This option allows customers to file with dependents and includes mortgage interest and retirement income. The last plan is the Premium Plus E-File, which costs $45.99. Although this option is the most expensive, it includes the most features, such as support for all deductions and coverage for all personal and business income. With each of these plans, customers can also file their state taxes for an additional $25.

File Quickly

Filing taxes can be painful and miserable, E-File's software makes the process quick and easy. In fact, many of the company's customers use the online tax software to file their taxes in less than 15 minutes.

Qualified Tax Support

Filing taxes can be confusing, but E-File online support, which is available to all users, can help answer questions within minutes so that customers don't have to spend hours on the phone with the IRS. Customer support can be accessed by following these steps:

  1. Login to your account at https://www.e-file.com/login.php
  2. Once logged in, click the "Help" button in the top right corner of the page
  3. Enter a brief question and click the "Search" button to view a list of articles pertaining to your question
  4. If an answer cannot be found in one of the help articles, click the "Click here" link at the bottom of the help window to issue a support ticket
  5. Enter your message and click the "Submit" button to send it and open up a ticket

Guarantees and Audit Protection

E-File provides a 100 percent accurate calculation guarantee with every purchase. It also provides a maximum refund and lowest price guarantee. Further, E-File provides audit protection, but it is part of the Protection Plus package and therefore costs extra to acquire.

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The Bad

  • Limited Customer Support

Limited Customer Support

The qualified online tax support is a bonus, but the lack of additional customer support is one negative for E-File. It is always helpful when companies offer multiple customer support options to ensure that customers receive the maximum refund and follow up on their taxes. With E-File, customer service is not available via phone, live chat, or social media.

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The Bottom Line

There are many things that E-File does well, including it's multiple plan options and free service for tax filing. The company also has an easy-to-use software that makes the filing process quick and simple. 

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Star Rating

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4.2

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135 Reviews

Review Breakdown

5 grade

67%

4 grade

14%

3 grade

4%

2 grade

3%

1 grade

12%

Sentiment Criteria

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Quality

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Service

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Carla Hastings, MN

I have used this site previously and this year I had a issue using the discount code. It would not let me apply it to my total so I ended up paying full price. I contacted customer service and they were excellent and refunded me the amount of my discount right away. They were friendly and professional. The site itself is very user friendly to use.

5 years ago

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Andrew Norsworthy

I am 57 years old and having obviously been doing my taxes a long time. Often when asked to do a survey I don't do it unless the service was excellent and in an era where customer service has deteriorated badly in this country , that seldom happens. I really , truly and honestly can say that this year was the easiest and most pleasant experience I ever had doing my taxes.

6 years ago

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Johanne

Love this company and service! Filing was super easy, and last year my money was promptly credited to my bank account from the IRS This year, I neglected to use a discount coupon offered to repeat customers. I emailed E-file, but frankly did not really expect a response. Not only did they respond very quickly, but credited my account right away. Wow in this day and age.!

6 years ago

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lacey jo Ocala, FL

Efile makes it easy to file your taxes especially once your information is in the system. I like how things are autofilled from the previous year filed. It makes filing a breeze and not so complicated. The protection plans are worth the little money spent.

1 year ago

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Dyrisha R McKnight Salem, AL

I think that E-FILING is much faster than faxing . My experience with e-filing is that I thought it was very difficult at first ; now its comprehendable, and it's really neat how the website application is set up for future client's.

3 years ago

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Eddie Rios Ogden, UT

E-File is an awesome service that cuts fees to almost none. They offer low cost tax filing and they are quick to post taxes to tax authorities for timely filing. Their online portal is easy to use and helpful in tax options. I appreciate the low-cost aspect of using E-file.

4 years ago

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Review Source

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Kenneth Brooks Newburgh, IN

I like the fact that using E-file is very easy to use, as long as you have your banking information readily available and it is inexpensive if you are getting a large refund. The one thing I dislike is, you pay the same amount if you owe money or getting a refund, whenever i owe money, i do the paper copy of my taxes. Additionally, my children use the software and if they are getting less than $100 back, it is not worth to them either and they go the paper route of getting their refund.

2 years ago

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Michele Denko Lakewood, OH

I wanted to rate the website after my taxes were filed but I accidentally hit one star, so I just wanted to reiterate the five stars that states I am very happy with how the filing went.

6 years ago

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Alexander Demidionok Englewood, CO

although there is no hot phone line for customer support, we managed to resolve all my issues via e mail correspondence very quickly and efficiently. My suggestion to everyone will be, first try communicate with customer support before you move further.

6 years ago

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Deana Wagner Donnelly, ID

I have used the 2 other online tax preparers, this year their software was not up to date. I turned to e-file, it was the easiest and quickest program I have used to date. Painless!

6 years ago

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Amanda Wilson Charlotte, NC

File is one of the best texts service companies that you can to know that it's going to get your taxes e-filed in at a timely manner without delay They are super

1 year ago

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Mudd E Jewelry Arlington, TX

E-File was affordable but not very reliable. I didn't get back the money they said I would and when talking to Customer Service, it was impossible. I wouldn't be doing that again.

1 year ago

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Dan Woodland Park, CO

E file was quick and easy to use. And I never had an issue with filling out and sending my tax returns. They were simple, self explanatory, fast and accurate.

2 years ago

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Gail A. Germantown, MD

E-file.com is a SCAM. They do not have their customers' best interest in mind. They simply want our money. I thought I had found E-file.com through IRS Free File, but I guess not because E.file.com is nowhere to be found on the IRS website. I probably found E-File.com because they pay for their website to show up in searches. Anyway, I carefully followed all the directions on the website, and I thought everything was fine because my three returns (one federal plus two states) were accepted. Also, I received a direct deposit from the IRS in the amount that I had expected one week later. Nevertheless, I decided that I should try entering my information on another website. I received way different results on FreeTaxUSA than I did on E-file.com, which is illogical. It turns out that E-file.com makes assumptions instead of going through each return line by line as they should. For example, there was no option to note how much income I made in each state, so all my income was included in both state returns, which caused more money than necessary to be owed to each state. The incomplete and incorrect instructions on E-file.com generated several errors on my federal and state returns. Once I realized that I received less and owed more than I should have, I googled what to do and discovered that the only solution was to amend all three returns. When you click on the "amended return" section on E-file.com, you are brought to a page that demands $29.99. You cannot even work on your amended return without paying first. After gathering all this information and realizing that E-file.com is a SCAM, I submitted a support request from my account and demanded a full refund. A week has passed, and no one has gotten back to me, which is not surprising at all. E-file.com states that only deluxe members receive phone support, and I cannot find a customer service number for them anywhere. How convenient for them and frustrating for any of the people who choose them because they need a free tax return. I wanted to amend my returns electronically because of the convenience of doing so, but I refused to give E-file.com any more money. I discovered that I could amend my returns on FreeTaxUSA if I first entered my information exactly as I had on E-file.com. Even though I entered the same information, the values (amount overpaid to the government and amounts owed to the states) were not matching those on E-file.com. Figuring out how E-file.com had computed the values that they did was a guessing game because, again, they assumed information rather than asking for it. To receive the values from E-file.com on FreeTaxUSA, I had to enter incorrect information that I had never specified in the first place. By the way, I thought all the returns would be free on E-file.com, but that was not the case. The federal return was free, but each state return was $29.99. I found a 40% off coupon on Google, so I paid a total of $35.99. Unlike E-file.com, FreeTaxUSA allowed me to file/amend all three returns for free. If you are someone who needs free federal as well as state returns, check out IRS Free File because several websites allow you to file both kinds of returns for free. FreeTaxUSA is much more detailed and modern than E-file.com. With that website, I was able to 1. increase my federal return by nearly $2,000 by claiming a credit that E-file.com had failed to mention and 2. decrease the total amount I owed to both states by nearly $500. On the bright side, I learned to stay far away from E-file.com and found an amazing resource in FreeTaxUSA. TLDR: Stay far away from E-file.com because they incorrectly input your information and cause a much smaller tax return than you deserve. Also, they charge you for state returns. If you are looking for free federal and state returns, check out IRS Free File for websites that offer both. I highly recommend FreeTaxUSA.

2 years ago

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Reply from E-File

I’m very sorry that you had trouble allocating your state income. Our software does offer the ability to allocate income to the state return in which it was earned. It sounds like you may have had difficulty with the questions/instructions associated with doing this. We work very hard to make the software easy to understand for all users. I apologize that you had difficulty with this. We have gone ahead and refunded your purchase. Please let us know if you need any further assistance.

May. 6th, 2022

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Kristin Glendale, AZ

This company took my money but never filed my taxes. I have been in touch with them to see why 1) I received an automated email stating my taxes were filed after submitting them on their website and 2) my credit card was charged, yet my account says they were NOT filed now and the government has not received my documents. It's been over a week since I have reached out once realizing their error. They admit that this happened but no one has been in touch with me to say it is resolved or refund my money so that I can pay for someone else to file the paperwork. If you want RELIABLE and a place with QUALITY customer service, DON'T GO HERE. They are not these things.

5 years ago

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Reply from E-File

Hello Kristen,

I am very sorry for the trouble you have had with this. While there was not enough information provided in this post to find you in our system, it sounds like you may have finished preparing your tax return but not completed the steps that the IRS requires to digitally sign your tax return so that we may transmit it electronically. Digitally signing is an IRS requirement, and only required when electronically transmitting a tax return. This is what the IRS uses to help combat taxpayer fraud.

I certainly understand that there was some confusion over this and it sounds like our initial response to your inquiry did not clear this up. As such, we would be happy to provide you with a refund as well as assist you further with this filing. Please feel free to email us at info@ our domain name.

Jun. 18th, 2019

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Kevin A Callaway, MD

Assisted my mother in-law with filing her taxes as I do every year. She is not eligible for social security and keeps a part time job just to keep busy and have a small income. So her return was as simple as they come...one W-2 and no dependents. Got to the very end of the online program and was told that she had been automatically upgraded to the deluxe version with no explanation of why. When I inquired, I was told that she was not eligible for the free version because she was over 65. Really E-file? I can understand if her age caused additional forms to be required, but it didn’t. Also, you should state why a client does not qualify for your free service immediately when it becomes known. Otherwise I would not have wasted time continuing on. Deceptive company...stay clear!

5 years ago

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Reply from E-File

Hello Kevin,

I apologize for any confusion with this. The IRS actually did have a rule that changed the filing type for anyone 65 years or older, this criteria disqualified taxpayers from using a federal 1040ez form (which is free to prepare on our website). This is why your account had been upgraded by our system from free to deluxe.

Now, with the recent tax law changes, the 1040ez form is no longer available. This year we continued to provide free software to all those who would have qualified for the ez form. We are looking at ways to expand this and the age criteria is one that we are trying to do away with.

If you or your mother-in-law would like, we would be happy to provide this years software free of charge. Just reach out to us at info@ our domain name and we will provide you with a coupon code to do so.

Jun. 18th, 2019

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Bradley Bunger Hot Springs Village, AR

I have revised my review, due to them rectifying the situation. They still need a customer service phone line and they did lose my taxes from last year. However, they promptly replied to my emails and after posting a bad review, they did find my 2017 tax info, so I’ll give them a three.

5 years ago

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Mabel Oshkosh, WI

I do not have a financial background, and E-File is easy to use, thorough and accurate. I have used this program for three years, and the price is affordable.

6 years ago

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Melody Los Angeles, CA

Just terrible!!! I couldn't even end up filing with them even though I filled out the forms because they asked for one piece of information I forgot about/didn't have AFTER payment so that was $65 thrown in the garbage. Also, their customer service is absolute trash. No way to speak to someone on the phone and the people working behind the scenes just copy and paste pre-written messages that don't even address the problem. They refused to give me a refund! They say they charge for the preparation, not to e-file...what exactly did they prepare?! I have to punch in all the numbers and info myself that I enter into their calculator! If I wanted to pay for preparation, I would've just gone to a CPA who would do a much better job. Bottom line: DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME/MONEY (P.S. it isn't really free)

6 years ago

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Reply from E-File

Hello Melody,

I am very sorry for the trouble you had with this. Now, $65 is not a price that we typically charge, please make sure that you used (with a dash) and not another tax software provider. With that said, it sounds like you prepared a tax return but did not have the information that the IRS requires to digitally sign and electronically transmit it. Digitally signing is a requirement whether you used our software or not. Now, we are happy to assist you with trying to locate the information you do not have or if you are unable to locate this, you can always print and mail the return that you prepared. For additional assistance with this, please contact us at info at .

Sincerely,

Customer Care

Apr. 25th, 2018

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Brendan Kearney Littleton, MA

E-File made good on my complaint. Refunded my money (their mistake) and then offered to file my taxes for free. I have changed my opinion of them, and, despite the challenges I faced using them, I have to admit that they rose to the occasion, corrected the error, and even saved me the nearly 50 dollar filing fee. Thank you E-File.

6 years ago

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Barb

I had to file a 1099 although I don't earn enough to pay to any federal tax. This state says I must. Other tax company's charge twice as much if you don't get a W2.

6 years ago

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Lynnelle Detroit, MI

I filed my taxes for the first time and went through you guys. I owed money but I wasn’t worried about that, the down fall of this company. You guys go through a middle man (Meta Bank) when owing money. All they took was my state taxes and I was fine with that. My refund said it was sent today, but guess what no refund in my account. I had to call several numbers just to be told they don’t know when my refund will be credited to my bank account. Which is a bummer because I have bills to pay and now I can’t do that because I don’t get paid until the 26th. So I’m broke until then. I will not be filing with you guys next year, this is to much of a hassle. You have answers for everything but as soon someone asks how long before it’s in my account no one has a answer. Smh

6 years ago

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Reply from E-File

Hello Lynnelle,

I am sorry for the time it has taken the IRS to process your refund. Unfortunately, there is no way for us (or any other tax software provider) to make the IRS expedite your refund. As for the bank you mentioned, I believe you opted to pay for your software out of the proceeds of your refund rather than use a credit/debit card. When a taxpayer selects this, the refund must go to a third party financial institution (like an escrow service). Once received, that financial institution pays for your software and disperses the balance to you. This can take up to 3 days for it to post to your account although it is usually faster. I apologize if this was not made clear in our previous correspondence.

Sincerely,

E-file Customer Care

Mar. 15th, 2018

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LORRI Sebastian, FL

Wanted to only file my state return. What a difficult process. Limited support. Site wanted me to complete my Federal even though I had already completed with another company. Charged me for both Federal and State and then was unable to efile the State. Requested a refund multiple times and got the "run around". Still waiting as of this review writing. My advise. There are multiple other sites that will do it for free with better support. Keep searching. :(

6 years ago

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Reply from E-File

Hello Lorri,

I am very sorry for the difficulty you had with this. I would like to look into this situation further and also make sure you get your refund ASAP are you able to email us at ?

Thank you,


E-file Customer Care

Mar. 14th, 2018

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Ernest P El Paso, TX

Everything is easy to use. It only takes a few quick google searches to understand how to fill it in, but it's pretty simple to use for the most part.

6 years ago

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Joe Leahy Marshfield, MA

My wife and I have used E file for the last 3 years.I feel UT is a safe convenient way to file your taxes from home and maintain privacy and save your info for following years..We highly recommend it.

2 years ago

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Kevin Adams Silver Spring, MD

This a very user friendly system and very easy to process as in EZ-1040 filing and getting the refund faster. It saved me a lot of time eliminating and locating the address of where to send my tax return year after year. The paperless feature is well worth it and less of a burden in filing hard copies. I can just file it in cloud for easy access as welll

4 years ago

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Shannon Cummings

Easy-to-use. Literally took me 15 minutes to do my taxes. Highly recommend to use this company. I've referred all my friends and family.

1 year ago

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Jose Cabrera San Diego, CA

Fast and easy to file my taxes on my own and received refund and state in 10 days ...and a good amount too....I recommend

2 years ago

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beverly84 ,

this is a very very quick and easy tax soft, tis really the first I am able to use regularly without having issues with navigating or such!

3 years ago

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Taxpayer Portland, OR

I never received the check E-File said they mailed to me. After a month, I asked them to reissue the check. They said no. Then they tried to blame it on COVID19 but still said no. Finally, I got them to issue a reimbursement to my credit card but they only reimbursed less than half. After quite a bit more back and forth, they issued another reimbursement to my credit card. But they still owe some and they say they won’t pay. They also won’t provide a rejoined number to call and refuse to escalate the issue internally. Very frustrating and time-consuming.

4 years ago

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Reply from E-File

This is not the protocol that we take when refunding customers. It sounds like you may have used another website. I am very sorry for the confusion with this. Since you left this review under the name "Taxpayer" and included no other contact information, I am unable to provide much more assistance here. However, if you would like to email us at info @e-file.com we will be happy to help you identify the company whom you used.

Jul. 17th, 2020

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Sergi South Pasadena, CA

It is free and works. It has improved significantly in last years. Sometimes is a little bit clumsy and printing the pages or saving them is confusing.

5 years ago

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Grandma765 Marion, IN

2019 filing 2018 THEY SAY THAT YOU CAN FILE FOR FREE BUT THEY END UP CHARGING YOU IF YOU ARE BUT NOT IF YOU ARE OVER “65” YEARS OLD. I AM ON LIMITED INCOME AND MAKE LESS THAN 15,000 ON SOCIAL SECURITY. MAKES NO SENSE TO ME. I WOULD NOT I REPEAT NOT RECOMMEND THIS SERVICE TO ANY ONE. I FEEL THAT IT IS A RIP OFF. VERY BAD SITE IS NOT USER FRIENDLY. !!!!!!!!!! ASKED FOR MY ACCOUNTS TO BE DELETED.

5 years ago

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Reply from E-File

I am very sorry for this. The IRS required anyone 65 years or older to file a 1040A tax form rather than a 1040ez form. The federal 1040ez form has always been free to prepare on our website. This is why your account was upgraded by our system from free to pay.

The recent tax law changes eliminated both the 1040ez and 1040A forms. This year we continued to provide free software to all those who would have qualified for the ez form. We are looking at ways to increase the number of users who we can offer free software to and the age restriction is something that we are working on removing to help accomplish this.

I apologize for the trouble and confusion with this. If you’d still like to use our software we are happy to provide it to you free of charge.

Jun. 18th, 2019

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Clay

Easy step by step instructions, and keeping track of the process let's you know exactly what is happening with the return

6 years ago

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Dennis in MN

I started using e-file when TurboTax crashed & don't plan to go back. I'm satisfied with the software and the expediency of your product.

6 years ago

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DeeJae Ethridge, TN

E-file was very easy to use. E-file was less expensive to use than other tax filing programs. It was easy to save and continue at a later time.

6 years ago

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Cynthia Ferris

e-file has made completing my tax returns so easy. The software is incredibly user-friendly and the price is better than any other service.

6 years ago

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Tammy Owego, NY

The forms were very easy to fill out and simple to understand. The info was saved from fed tax form and transferred over to the state forms

6 years ago

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Richard

Wish I could give zero rating. This company changed the address entry on address line 1 and also used it as the employer name. They have not replied to my emails and I cannot amend the W-2's yet as the were submitted to the IRS over a week ago (and 10 days after I submitted) and cannot be amended until after acceptance by the IRS. NEVER USE THIS COMPANY - THEY SCREW UP YOUR FILINGS AND THEN IGNORE YOU, YOU WILL HAVE TO PAY TO FIX THEIR SCREW-UPS.

6 years ago

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Reply from E-File

Hello Richard,

I am very sorry for this poor experience. I would like to investigate this matter more and try to resolve it if possible. Would you be able to provide me with your email address or last name so that I can try to find you in our system?

Thank you for your help with this and I apologize again for the trouble you had with this.

Sincerely,


E-file Customer Care

Feb. 14th, 2018

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yonne ramseur Suwanee, GA

Do not use this company, they are scam artist out to make a quick buck. I tried to use them to to file my taxes, and after I had paid the filing fee, it prompted my to for additional information, that I didnt have and so I did my on my own and when I requested a refund, they told my that, since I had used their site to calculate my return, that they would deny me request. That is a poor business practice and their management has questionable morals.

7 years ago

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Robert Lino

This was so easy to use. I got my taxes done in under 90 minutes.

8 months ago

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Peter Land O' Lakes, FL

Very difficult to navigate and was difficult to get a live representative. They always wanted to communicate via email or online chat I chose to do business with a different company.

1 year ago

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Reply from E-File

We do provide telephone support with our deluxe and premium software, unfortunately it is not included with our free basic software. The phone number can be found under "Help & Support" inside those accounts. Free accounts are eligible for email/online support. I am sorry for any confusion or difficulty with this.

Jul. 11th, 2023

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Joseph Tempe, AZ

What a simple and great way to file your taxes, I used E-File and the results were great, easier than expected

1 year ago

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Muzette Alcocer Bentonville, AR

Very user friendly and walks you thru step by step, leaving you feeling confident that you have completed your taxes correctly!

1 year ago

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seanth57 Columbus, GA

My experiences with this company has been outstanding, the software is easy to use, with very simple instructions.

3 years ago

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James Sabeti

Everything was excellent, couldn't ask for a better platform, keep up the good work and thanks again.

6 years ago

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JDP

I did not find a way to lower my "owed" taxes enough, and there was no discount for paying child support to which I pay 28% of my income to.

6 years ago

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JT Clearfield, UT

Fast and convenient, they sent me emails keeping me up to date, when both the state and federal were accepted

6 years ago

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Rudy_Shane@yahoo.com Grand Island, NE

Terrible customer service! Had to call em out on Twitter to get a response. No phone support. They finally did contact me and resolved the issue after several emails back and forth.

6 years ago

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Reply from E-File

Hello Shane,

I am truly sorry for the difficulty you had receiving support from us. I attempted to search our records and we do not show any support requests sent through the website or email prior to your comments on Twitter. I'm not sure what happened here but none the less, I apologize for all the trouble you had reaching us. Please let us know if there is anything we can do to assist you in the future.

Sincerely,


E-file Customer Care

Feb. 14th, 2018

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Jenni Traverse City, MI

Makes everything uncomplicated, with the questions asked; and save the information to carryover each year

6 years ago

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Scott Seattle, WA

The process was very simply, very fast, and free. Although referring another person was a little confusing

6 years ago